St. Louis Rams wide receiver Austin Pettis (83) can't come up with the pass against Dallas Cowboys cornerback Mike Jenkins (21) during the second half of the NFL football game at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, Sunday, Oct. 23, 2011. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)

Dallas Cowboys cornerback Mike Jenkins goes up to knock away a pass to Washington Redskins wide receiver Santana Moss during the second half of an NFL football game Monday, Sept. 26, 2011, in Arlington. The pass was incomplete

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Dallas Cowboys cornerback Mike Jenkins kneels before leaving the NFL football game with a left-shoulder injury during the first half against the Washington Redskins on Monday, Sept. 26, 2011, in Arlington.

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Cowboys cornerback Mike Jenkins celebrates the team's victory over the Washington Redskins at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington on Monday, Sept. 26, 2011. The Cowboys won with a late fourth quarter field goal, 18-16.

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San Francisco 49ers running back Frank Gore (21) runs away from Dallas Cowboys defensive back Mike Jenkins (21) in the second quarter of an NFL football game in San Francisco, Sunday, Sept. 18, 2011. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - SEPTEMBER 18: Kyle Williams #10 of the San Francisco 49ers catches a touchdown over Mike Jenkins #21 of the Dallas Cowboys at Candlestick Park on September 18, 2011 in San Francisco, California.

Dallas Cowboys cornerback Orlando Scandrick (left) celebrates his 40-yard interception return for a touchdown with cornerback Mike Jenkins on Sunday. Scandrick had one of Dallas’ four picks of Peyton Manning, with two being returned for touchdowns.

Cowboys cornerback Mike Jenkins has some simple advice for containing Philadelphia's receivers: “Just be physical. Go out and hit them in the mouth.”

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Dallas Cowboys' Mike Jenkins (21) prepares to make a catch in a drill during the afternoon practice at NFL football training camp in San Antonio on Thursday, July 29, 2010. (AP Photo/The Dallas Morning News, Vernon Bryant) ** MANDATORY CREDIT MAGS OUT TV OUT INTERNET: AP MEMBERS ONLY **

Mike Jenkins (above) and Orlando Scandrick are battling for the Cowboys' starting right cornerback position.

Cowboys cornerback Mike Jenkins (left) breaks up a pass intended for Broncos wide receiver Brandon Marshall on Sunday during Denver's victory. The loss sent the Cowboys to 2-2, but owner Jerry Jones says he's not discouraged by the record.

Facing a diminished role after the Cowboys signed Brandon Carr and drafted Morris Claiborne, cornerback Mike Jenkins asked for a trade. He also expressed his displeasure by staying home in Florida rather than adhering to the club's wishes that he rehab his surgically repaired right shoulder in Irving.

But rather than react emotionally to Jenkins' fit, the Cowboys calmly repeated throughout the summer they had plans for the fifth-year pro, who is in the final year of his contract.

So there was Jenkins against Tampa Bay, logging 31 of the defense's 60 snaps and six special-teams plays in just his second game back. Among the key plays in Dallas' 16-10 win was his break-up of a deep ball intended for Vincent Jackson with the Bucs trailing by three late in the third.

“That was actually my first time even using my arm like that,” Jenkins told DallasCowboys.com. “Going through practice, I never got a chance to actually go all out and jump up for a ball. ... I felt pretty good.”

“There's been a business side to football for a long, long time,” Garrett said Thursday. “Read the story on Pudge Heffelfinger when he first signed his contract (to become the first pro football player in 1892). It's a good story. But that's been the nature of this thing forever.

“You don't get emotional about it. You say, ‘OK, I understand what his motivations are, how he might perceive this. Let's communicate to the best of our ability what we're trying to get accomplished.'

“We really like Mike. We just need to be patient with his injury. He needed to fight through the business aspects of this decision, get him back here, embrace him and get him going. That was our philosophy all along.”

True to their word, the Cowboys looked for ways to get Jenkins on the field once he got healthy. Aiding in that effort was Carr, who enthusiastically moved to safety last week because of an injury to Gerald Sensabaugh and because he knew it would allow Jenkins to get more snaps.

“Brandon embraced this opportunity,” Garrett said. “He saw he could help our team. It wasn't like, ‘Hey, I'm a cover corner. You've got to leave me there.' It was, ‘Hey, I can do this. I haven't done it (since high school), but I can do this.'”

With Carr, Jenkins and the rest of the corners playing at a high level, Dallas enters Week 4 ranked first in total defense (250.0 yards) and tied for seventh in scoring defense (18.0 points).

“You can't have enough cover corners,” Garrett said. “Quarterbacks in this league can really throw and the receivers can make plays. If you don't have enough cover guys, you're really limiting yourself on defense. We value the position really highly ... having numbers is important to absorb injuries.”